#NYPD chief blames surge in shootings on ‘lawlessness’ created by recent reforms

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Chief of Crime Control Strategies Michael Lipetri
Taidgh Barron/NY Post

Recent police reform has caused a state of “lawlessness” in New York City — resulting in the surge in gun violence, a top NYPD official said in a recent interview.

Chief of Crime Control Strategies Michael LiPetri blamed the troubling spike in shootings on parolees who are committing crimes with impunity.

“We tie it to street lawlessness right now,” LiPetri told Fox News. “The small amount of individuals that are out there causing mayhem, they feel empowered. We see an increase in dice games on the street. We’re seeing an increase in house parties then getting violent. So the individuals that are causing these quality-of-life conditions are the very people that are then part of the violence after the fact.”

The percentage of parolees involved in shooting incidents or murders is at a 15-year high, according to LiPetri, whose unit has been tracking the parolee population in relation to violent crimes since 2005.

He attributed that statistic to recent bail reform, the release of inmates due to the coronavirus and the fact that courts have been closed during the pandemic, allowing gun possession defendants roam free.

“The NYPD was for certain reforms, we were,” LiPetri said. “It’s just that we really didn’t have a voice when these reforms were drafted. And then when it comes to us having a voice with some of the Rikers releases, our voices were ignored for the most part.”

He railed, “There is a victim behind the next crime. And I don’t hear a lot of talk about the victims. And quite frankly, there’s not a lot of talk about anything that’s going on right now in the city of New York except against the police.”

The Fox News article was tweeted by both the 60th Precinct and 77th Precinct on Friday at the behest of someone at One Police Plaza, sources told The Post.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo passed a series of police reform bills into law this month, including repealing the state’s “50-a” rule, allowing for public access to disciplinary records.

The city council has also passed legislation that criminalizes the use of police chokeholds and requires the NYPD to standardize police discipline and release the guidelines for punishment to the public.